Now that 2008 is officially behind us we decided to put together a list of the most searched for reef equipment items of 2008. For those of you who don’t know, the more an item is searched for the more popular that product is. If this post proves popular then we might make this a Reef Builders annual tradition.  So without further ado, we give you the Reef Builders Top 5 most searched for reef equipment products of 2008.

#5 Euro Reef nano skimmer

One of the biggest complaints about a nano aquarium is  a poor functioning nano protein skimmer. Euro reef decided to capitalize on the modding trend by releasing several models of their nano skimmers to the public. Each model is a different size and footprint allowing you to pick a model thats right for your tank. With these nano skimmers starting at only $98.00, Euro Reef makes it easy to upgrade your nano aquarium.

#4 Hydor Koralia Magnum

Hydor was put on the map quickly in early 200y with the release of their Koralia line. A simple pump design based of the highly efficient prop technology that is used in many boating applications made its way over to aquariums across the world at a reasonable price point. One of the many complaints though on the original Koralia’s was the slower GPH flow rates. Seeking to address this issue, Hydor came our with the Magnum line of Koralias which greatly increased flow. The Hydor Koralia Magnum model 5 pushes 1850 GPH using only 8 watts. The Hydor Koralia Magnum model 6 pushes 2200 GPH using sipping 10 watts. The Hydor Koralia Magnum model 7 pushes 2700 GPH while using 12 watts and finally the Hydor Koralia Magnum model 8 pushes water at 3250 GPH while eating up 19 watts. Pricing starts at $130, which isn’t the cheapest but still a fair amount for a respectable pump.

#3 Aquatic Life HID lighting Unit

We will admit we were a little blindsided by this new aquarium manufacturer that came out of nowhere. Aquatic life when from 0 to having numerous products in which the modern aquarist can choose and pick from. Of those new products the HID lighting unit proved to be the most popular. Taking a page out of European and Japan standards these lighting units were based of the principle that you didn’t have to illuminate your entire reef aquarium but instead you only illuminated a “spot” in which the vast amount of the light would be directed and then from there it would become less intense, something that the Japanese and Germans have been doing for quite some time now. There are of course T5’s included in these lamps, the 36″ model and the 72″ model each get 3 39 watt T5’s while the 48″ model gets 2 54 watts. The 36″ model carries a retail of $599 the 48″ model $799 and the 72″ model $1199.

#2 Elos system mini

elos-system-mini-family

Some of the most beautiful cars in the world are designed by Italians, its in their blood. Carrying over are Elos entire line of aquarium “systems”, while having mostly largely systems Elos did not have a nano aquarium in which to target the nano market. Along came the Elos Mini aquarium which was unveiled in Germany at Interzoo 2008. The Elos system mini is beautiful to say the least, with Elos sparing no expense in which to craft and make this new system. Featuring an LED light and full sump system, rumors abound that Elos spent over 3 years working on the LED system alone for heat placement. Users report the LED lighting system transmits very low amounts of heat to the top of the aquarium while the bulk of the heat is projected on the top of the unit. However, with all these cool features comes a price, the entire system, including pool cube, stand, sump including pumps and protein skimmers will set you back $1599. Ferrari’s aren’t cheap, nor are Lamborghini’s…Elos sadly isn’t an exception.

#1 Red Sea max 250

The most anticipated new product of 2008 was no doubt Red Sea’s Max 250 aquarium. The max 250 is the max 34 big brother both in size and equipment. The Max 250 was also introduced at Interzoo 2008 in Germany and and highly regarded as a nice replacement for customers wanting an all in one unit that wasn’t a nano but not a truly large system. The Max 250 delivered on that customer whim by displacing 65 gallons, finally a system that is “all in one” that isn’t a nano. The Red Sea Max 250 will be available in black, silver or white. It comes with 6×39 watt T5 lighting, which equals to 236 watts of total lighting. Built in fans and lights are controlled with the T5’s lights via a nice digital timer. Dual aquarium pumps which produce about 15x aquarium turnover at 3600 lph (950 GPH).  Comes with all the mechanical, biological and chemical stages as the original red sea max. There will be a chiller kit available soon and the stand will be able to easily accommodate this. Expect the power center to be the same as the smaller model with one cord going to the main socket. Red Sea had problems getting this aquarium to market, when it was released in 2008 the German market (of all places) snapped this model up so much that other areas of the world suffered as a result from no stock levels. The United Kingdom got a Winter 2008 release date and the United States is rumored to have a early 2009 official release date although there are some select (read: like 1) distributor  in which you can pick this model up from. Retail price is said to be around $1499.